Method and apparatus for creating dynamic webpages in a media communication system

ABSTRACT

A system that incorporates teachings of the present disclosure may include, for example, an Internet Protocol Television system having a controller to create a template defining a format of presentation of an webpage or HTML page using an iTV or IPTV application system, receive a request for the page from a subscriber of the iTV or IPTV system. The system can access application system subscriber data for the subscriber and a presentation of the page is dynamically adapted according to the application system subscriber data. In one alternative at, the page can be dynamically adapted by changing in content or by changing a look and feel of an HTML page or webpage. In another alternative, the webpage or HTML page can be dynamically adapted by modifying graphic user interface elements based on the application system subscriber data. Other embodiments are disclosed.

RELATED MATTERS

This application is a Continuation of and claims priority to U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 14/920,987 filed Oct. 23, 2015, now U.S. PatentPublication No. 2016/0044366, which is a Continuation of and claimspriority to U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/606,614, filed on Jan.27, 2015, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,197,940, which is a Continuation of andclaims priority to U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/469,774, filed onAug. 27, 2014, now U.S. Pat. No. 8,973,046, which is a Continuation ofand claims priority to U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/259,171,filed on Oct. 27, 2008, now U.S. Pat. No. 8,850,482. The contents ofeach of the foregoing is/are hereby incorporated by reference into thisapplication as if set forth herein in full.

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

The present disclosure relates generally to webpage developmenttechniques and more specifically to a method and apparatus for creatingdynamic webpages in a media communication system.

BACKGROUND

Webpages on the public Internet provide users a wealth of information.Webpage development tools can provide their users a means to customizewebpages and the content presented thereby. Typically, webpages aredesigned for common media devices such as personal computers. Some mediadevices with limited functionality such as some mobile phone models canaccess Internet content by way of modified webpages that present limitedcontent and graphics. Webpages are generally static in nature in termsof formatting and in many instances in terms of content.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIGS. 1-4 depict illustrative embodiments of communication systems thatprovide media services;

FIG. 5 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a portal interacting withat least one among the communication systems of FIGS. 1-4;

FIG. 6 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a communication deviceutilized in the communication systems of FIGS. 1-4;

FIG. 7 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a method operating inportions of the communication systems of FIGS. 1-4;

FIG. 8 depicts an illustrative embodiment of webpage graphical userinterface (GUI) templates utilized by the method of FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a customized webpage GUIpresented on a first presentation device according to the method of FIG.7;

FIG. 10 depicts an illustrative embodiment of the customized webpage GUIadapted for presentation on a second presentation device according tothe method of FIG. 7; and

FIG. 11 is a diagrammatic representation of a machine in the form of acomputer system within which a set of instructions, when executed, maycause the machine to perform any one or more of the methodologiesdiscussed herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

One embodiment of the present disclosure entails an Internet ProtocolTelevision (IPTV) system having a controller to create a HyperTextMarkup Language (HTML) page with a template defining a format ofpresentation of the HTML page using an IPTV application system, receivea request for the HTML page from a subscriber of the IPTV system, accessapplication system subscriber data for the subscriber, and dynamicallyadapt a presentation of the HTML page according to the applicationsystem subscriber data.

Another embodiment of the present disclosure entails an interactive TV(iTV) system having a controller to create an iTV page with a templatedefining a format of presentation of the iTV page using an iTVapplication system, receive a request for the iTV page from a subscriberof the iTV system, access application system subscriber data for thesubscriber, and dynamically adapt a presentation of the iTV pageaccording to the application system subscriber data.

Another embodiment of the present disclosure entails a media processorhaving a controller to create a webpage with a template defining aformat of presentation of the web page using an IPTV application system,receive a request for the web page from a subscriber of the IPTV system,access subscriber data for the subscriber sending the request, anddynamically adapt a presentation of the webpage according to thesubscriber data.

Yet another embodiment of the present disclosure entails a methodcomprising elements of creating an iTV page with a template defining aformat of presentation of the iTV page using an iTV application system,receiving a request for the iTV page from a subscriber of the iTVsystem, accessing application system subscriber data for the subscriber,dynamically adapting a presentation of the iTV page according to theapplication system subscriber data.

FIG. 1 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a first communicationsystem 100 for delivering media content. The communication system 100can represent an Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) broadcast mediasystem. In a typical IPTV infrastructure, there is a super head-endoffice (SHO) with at least one super headend office server (SHS) whichreceives national media programs from satellite and/or media serversfrom service providers of multimedia broadcast channels. In the presentcontext, media programs can represent audio content, moving imagecontent such as videos, still image content, and/or combinationsthereof. The SHS server forwards IP packets associated with the mediacontent to video head-end servers (VHS) via a network of aggregationpoints such as video head-end offices (VHO) according to a commonmulticast communication method.

The VHS then distributes multimedia broadcast programs via an accessnetwork to commercial and/or residential buildings 102 housing a gateway104 (e.g., a residential gateway or RG). The access network canrepresent a bank of digital subscriber line access multiplexers (DSLAMs)located in a central office or a service area interface that providebroadband services over optical links or copper twisted pairs tobuildings 102. The gateway 104 distributes broadcast signals to mediaprocessors 106 such as Set-Top Boxes (STBs) which in turn presentbroadcast selections to media devices 108 such as computers ortelevision sets managed in some instances by a media controller 107(e.g., an infrared or RF remote control). Unicast traffic can also beexchanged between the media processors 106 and subsystems of the IPTVmedia system for services such as video-on-demand (VoD). It will beappreciated by one of ordinary skill in the art that the media devices108 and/or portable communication devices 116 shown in FIG. 1 can be anintegral part of the media processor 106 and can be communicativelycoupled to the gateway 104. In this particular embodiment, an integraldevice such as described can receive, respond, process and presentmulticast or unicast media content.

The IPTV media system can be coupled to one or more computing devices130 a portion of which can operate as a web server for providing portalservices over an Internet Service Provider (ISP) network 132 to fixedline media devices 108 or portable communication devices 116 by way of awireless access point 117 providing Wireless Fidelity or WiFi services,or cellular communication services (e.g., GSM, CDMA, UMTS, WiMAX, etc.).Another distinct portion of the one or more computing devices 130 can beused as a web server which can operate independently of the web servermentioned above or can be an integral part thereof. This web server,which will be referred to herein as web server 130, can be used fordeveloping web pages, and/or presenting web pages to presentationdevices operably coupled to the first communication system 100.

A satellite broadcast television system can be used in place of the IPTVmedia system. In this embodiment, signals transmitted by a satellite 115can be intercepted by a satellite dish receiver 131 coupled to building102 which conveys media signals to the media processors 106. The mediareceivers 106 can be equipped with a broadband port to the ISP network132. Although not shown, the communication system 100 can also becombined or replaced with analog or digital broadcast distributionssystems such as cable TV systems.

FIG. 2 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a second communicationsystem 200 for delivering media content. Communication system 200 can beoverlaid or operably coupled with communication system 100 as anotherrepresentative embodiment of said communication system. The system 200includes a distribution switch/router system 228 at a central office218. The distribution switch/router system 228 receives video data via amulticast television stream 230 from a second distribution switch/router234 at an intermediate office 220. The multicast television stream 230includes Internet Protocol (IP) data packets addressed to a multicast IPaddress associated with a television channel. The distributionswitch/router system 228 can cache data associated with each televisionchannel received from the intermediate office 220.

The distribution switch/router system 228 also receives unicast datatraffic from the intermediate office 220 via a unicast traffic stream232. The unicast traffic stream 232 includes data packets related todevices located at a particular residence, such as the residence 202.For example, the unicast traffic stream 232 can include data trafficrelated to a digital subscriber line, a telephone line, another dataconnection, or any combination thereof. To illustrate, the unicasttraffic stream 232 can communicate data packets to and from a telephone212 associated with a subscriber at the residence 202. The telephone 212can be a Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) telephone. To furtherillustrate, the unicast traffic stream 232 can communicate data packetsto and from a personal computer 210 at the residence 202 via one or moredata routers 208. In an additional illustration, the unicast trafficstream 232 can communicate data packets to and from a set-top boxdevice, such as the set-top box devices 204, 206. The unicast trafficstream 232 can communicate data packets to and from the devices locatedat the residence 202 via one or more residential gateways 214 associatedwith the residence 202.

The distribution switch/router system 228 can send data to one or moreaccess switch/router systems 226. The access switch/router system 226can include or be included within a service area interface 216. In aparticular embodiment, the access switch/router system 226 can include aDSLAM. The access switch/router system 226 can receive data from thedistribution switch/router system 228 via a broadcast television (BTV)stream 222 and a plurality of unicast subscriber traffic streams 224.The BTV stream 222 can be used to communicate video data packetsassociated with a multicast stream.

For example, the BTV stream 222 can include a multicast virtual localarea network (VLAN) connection between the distribution switch/routersystem 228 and the access switch/router system 226. Each of theplurality of subscriber traffic streams 224 can be used to communicatesubscriber specific data packets. For example, the first subscribertraffic stream can communicate data related to a first subscriber, andthe nth subscriber traffic stream can communicate data related to an nthsubscriber. Each subscriber to the system 200 can be associated with arespective subscriber traffic stream 224. The subscriber traffic stream224 can include a subscriber VLAN connection between the distributionswitch/router system 228 and the access switch/router system 226 that isassociated with a particular set-top box device 204, 206, a particularresidence 202, a particular residential gateway 214, another deviceassociated with a subscriber, or any combination thereof.

In an illustrative embodiment, a set-top box device, such as the set-topbox device 204, receives a channel change command from an input device,such as a remoter control device. The channel change command canindicate selection of an IPTV channel. After receiving the channelchange command, the set-top box device 204 generates channel selectiondata that indicates the selection of the IPTV channel. The set-top boxdevice 204 can send the channel selection data to the accessswitch/router system 226 via the residential gateway 214. The channelselection data can include an Internet Group Management Protocol (IGMP)Join request. In an illustrative embodiment, the access switch/routersystem 226 can identify whether it is joined to a multicast groupassociated with the requested channel based on information in the IGMPJoin request.

If the access switch/router system 226 is not joined to the multicastgroup associated with the requested channel, the access switch/routersystem 226 can generate a multicast stream request. The multicast streamrequest can be generated by modifying the received channel selectiondata. In an illustrative embodiment, the access switch/router system 226can modify an IGMP Join request to produce a proxy IGMP Join request.The access switch/router system 226 can send the multicast streamrequest to the distribution switch/router system 228 via the BTV stream222. In response to receiving the multicast stream request, thedistribution switch/router system 228 can send a stream associated withthe requested channel to the access switch/router system 226 via the BTVstream 222.

The web server 130 of FIG. 1 can be operably coupled to the secondcommunication system 200 for purposes similar to those described above.

FIG. 3 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a third communicationsystem 300 for delivering media content. Communication system 300 can beoverlaid or operably coupled with communication systems 100-200 asanother representative embodiment of said communication systems. Asshown, the system 300 can include a client facing tier 302, anapplication tier 304, an acquisition tier 306, and an operations andmanagement tier 308. Each tier 302, 304, 306, 308 is coupled to aprivate network 310, such as a network of common packet-switched routersand/or switches; to a public network 312, such as the Internet; or toboth the private network 310 and the public network 312. For example,the client-facing tier 302 can be coupled to the private network 310.Further, the application tier 304 can be coupled to the private network310 and to the public network 312. The acquisition tier 306 can also becoupled to the private network 310 and to the public network 312.Additionally, the operations and management tier 308 can be coupled tothe public network 312.

As illustrated in FIG. 3, the various tiers 302, 304, 306, 308communicate with each other via the private network 310 and the publicnetwork 312. For instance, the client-facing tier 302 can communicatewith the application tier 304 and the acquisition tier 306 via theprivate network 310. The application tier 304 can communicate with theacquisition tier 306 via the private network 310. Further, theapplication tier 304 can communicate with the acquisition tier 306 andthe operations and management tier 308 via the public network 312.Moreover, the acquisition tier 306 can communicate with the operationsand management tier 308 via the public network 312. In a particularembodiment, elements of the application tier 304, including, but notlimited to, a client gateway 350, can communicate directly with theclient-facing tier 302.

The client-facing tier 302 can communicate with user equipment via anaccess network 366, such as an IPTV access network. In an illustrativeembodiment, customer premises equipment (CPE) 314, 322 can be coupled toa local switch, router, or other device of the access network 366. Theclient-facing tier 302 can communicate with a first representativeset-top box device 316 via the first CPE 314 and with a secondrepresentative set-top box device 324 via the second CPE 322. In aparticular embodiment, the first representative set-top box device 316and the first CPE 314 can be located at a first customer premise, andthe second representative set-top box device 324 and the second CPE 322can be located at a second customer premise.

In another particular embodiment, the first representative set-top boxdevice 316 and the second representative set-top box device 324 can belocated at a single customer premise, both coupled to one of the CPE314, 322. The CPE 314, 322 can include routers, local area networkdevices, modems, such as digital subscriber line (DSL) modems, any othersuitable devices for facilitating communication between a set-top boxdevice and the access network 366, or any combination thereof.

In an illustrative embodiment, the client-facing tier 302 can be coupledto the CPE 314, 322 via fiber optic cables. In another illustrativeembodiment, the CPE 314, 322 can include DSL modems that are coupled toone or more network nodes via twisted pairs, and the client-facing tier302 can be coupled to the network nodes via fiber-optic cables. Eachset-top box device 316, 324 can process data received via the accessnetwork 366, via a common IPTV software platform.

The first set-top box device 316 can be coupled to a first externaldisplay device, such as a first television monitor 318, and the secondset-top box device 324 can be coupled to a second external displaydevice, such as a second television monitor 326. Moreover, the firstset-top box device 316 can communicate with a first remote control 320,and the second set-top box device 324 can communicate with a secondremote control 328. The set-top box devices 316, 324 can include IPTVset-top box devices; video gaming devices or consoles that are adaptedto receive IPTV content; personal computers or other computing devicesthat are adapted to emulate set-top box device functionalities; anyother device adapted to receive IPTV content and transmit data to anIPTV system via an access network; or any combination thereof.

In an illustrative, non-limiting embodiment, each set-top box device316, 324 can receive data, video, or any combination thereof, from theclient-facing tier 302 via the access network 366 and render or displaythe data, video, or any combination thereof, at the display device 318,326 to which it is coupled. In an illustrative embodiment, the set-topbox devices 316, 324 can include tuners that receive and decodetelevision programming signals or packet streams for transmission to thedisplay devices 318, 326. Further, the set-top box devices 316, 324 caneach include a STB processor 370 and a STB memory device 372 that isaccessible to the STB processor 370. In one embodiment, a computerprogram, such as the STB computer program 374, can be embedded withinthe STB memory device 372.

In an illustrative embodiment, the client-facing tier 302 can include aclient-facing tier (CFT) switch 330 that manages communication betweenthe client-facing tier 302 and the access network 366 and between theclient-facing tier 302 and the private network 310. As illustrated, theCFT switch 330 is coupled to one or more distribution servers, such asDistribution-servers (D-servers) 332 that store, format, encode,replicate, or otherwise manipulate or prepare video content forcommunication from the client-facing tier 302 to the set-top box devices316, 324. The CFT switch 330 can also be coupled to a terminal server334 that provides terminal devices with a point of connection to theIPTV system 300 via the client-facing tier 302.

In a particular embodiment, the CFT switch 330 can be coupled to a VoDserver 336 that stores or provides VoD content imported by the IPTVsystem 300. Further, the CFT switch 330 is coupled to one or more videoservers 380 that receive video content and transmit the content to theset-top boxes 316, 324 via the access network 366. The client-facingtier 302 may include a CPE management server 382 that managescommunications to and from the CPE 314 and the CPE 322. For example, theCPE management server 382 may collect performance data associated withthe set-top box devices 316, 324 from the CPE 314 or the CPE 322 andforward the collected performance data to a server associated with theoperations and management tier 308.

In an illustrative embodiment, the client-facing tier 302 cancommunicate with a large number of set-top boxes, such as therepresentative set-top boxes 316, 324, over a wide geographic area, suchas a metropolitan area, a viewing area, a statewide area, a regionalarea, a nationwide area or any other suitable geographic area, marketarea, or subscriber or customer group that can be supported bynetworking the client-facing tier 302 to numerous set-top box devices.In a particular embodiment, the CFT switch 330, or any portion thereof,can include a multicast router or switch that communicates with multipleset-top box devices via a multicast-enabled network.

As illustrated in FIG. 3, the application tier 304 can communicate withboth the private network 310 and the public network 312. The applicationtier 304 can include a first application tier (APP) switch 338 and asecond APP switch 340. In a particular embodiment, the first APP switch338 can be coupled to the second APP switch 340. The first APP switch338 can be coupled to an application server 342 and to an OSS/BSSgateway 344. In a particular embodiment, the application server 342 canprovide applications to the set-top box devices 316, 324 via the accessnetwork 366, which enable the set-top box devices 316, 324 to providefunctions, such as interactive program guides, video gaming, display,messaging, processing of VoD material and other IPTV content, etc. In anillustrative embodiment, the application server 342 can provide locationinformation to the set-top box devices 316, 324. In a particularembodiment, the OSS/BSS gateway 344 includes operation systems andsupport (OSS) data, as well as billing systems and support (BSS) data.In one embodiment, the OSS/BSS gateway 344 can provide or restrictaccess to an OSS/BSS server 364 that stores operations and billingsystems data.

The second APP switch 340 can be coupled to a domain controller 346 thatprovides Internet access, for example, to users at their computers 368via the public network 312. For example, the domain controller 346 canprovide remote Internet access to IPTV account information, e-mail,personalized Internet services, or other online services via the publicnetwork 312. In addition, the second APP switch 340 can be coupled to asubscriber and system store 348 that includes account information, suchas account information that is associated with users who access the IPTVsystem 300 via the private network 310 or the public network 312. In anillustrative embodiment, the subscriber and system store 348 can storesubscriber or customer data and create subscriber or customer profilesthat are associated with IP addresses, stock-keeping unit (SKU) numbers,other identifiers, or any combination thereof, of corresponding set-topbox devices 316, 324. In another illustrative embodiment, the subscriberand system store can store data associated with capabilities of set-topbox devices associated with particular customers.

In a particular embodiment, the application tier 304 can include aclient gateway 350 that communicates data directly to the client-facingtier 302. In this embodiment, the client gateway 350 can be coupleddirectly to the CFT switch 330. The client gateway 350 can provide useraccess to the private network 310 and the tiers coupled thereto. In anillustrative embodiment, the set-top box devices 316, 324 can access theIPTV system 300 via the access network 366, using information receivedfrom the client gateway 350. User devices can access the client gateway350 via the access network 366, and the client gateway 350 can allowsuch devices to access the private network 310 once the devices areauthenticated or verified. Similarly, the client gateway 350 can preventunauthorized devices, such as hacker computers or stolen set-top boxdevices from accessing the private network 310, by denying access tothese devices beyond the access network 366.

For example, when the first representative set-top box device 316accesses the client-facing tier 302 via the access network 366, theclient gateway 350 can verify subscriber information by communicatingwith the subscriber and system store 348 via the private network 310.Further, the client gateway 350 can verify billing information andstatus by communicating with the OSS/BSS gateway 344 via the privatenetwork 310. In one embodiment, the OSS/BSS gateway 344 can transmit aquery via the public network 312 to the OSS/BSS server 364. After theclient gateway 350 confirms subscriber and/or billing information, theclient gateway 350 can allow the set-top box device 316 to access IPTVcontent and VoD content at the client-facing tier 302. If the clientgateway 350 cannot verify subscriber information for the set-top boxdevice 316, e.g., because it is connected to an unauthorized twistedpair, the client gateway 350 can block transmissions to and from theset-top box device 316 beyond the access network 366.

As indicated in FIG. 3, the acquisition tier 306 includes an acquisitiontier (AQT) switch 352 that communicates with the private network 310.The AQT switch 352 can also communicate with the operations andmanagement tier 308 via the public network 312. In a particularembodiment, the AQT switch 352 can be coupled to one or more liveAcquisition-servers (A-servers) 354 that receive or acquire televisioncontent, movie content, advertisement content, other video content, orany combination thereof, from a broadcast service 356, such as asatellite acquisition system or satellite head-end office. In aparticular embodiment, the live acquisition server 354 can transmitcontent to the AQT switch 352, and the AQT switch 352 can transmit thecontent to the CFT switch 330 via the private network 310.

In an illustrative embodiment, content can be transmitted to theD-servers 332, where it can be encoded, formatted, stored, replicated,or otherwise manipulated and prepared for communication from the videoserver(s) 380 to the set-top box devices 316, 324. The CFT switch 330can receive content from the video server(s) 380 and communicate thecontent to the CPE 314, 322 via the access network 366. The set-top boxdevices 316, 324 can receive the content via the CPE 314, 322, and cantransmit the content to the television monitors 318, 326. In anillustrative embodiment, video or audio portions of the content can bestreamed to the set-top box devices 316, 324.

Further, the AQT switch 352 can be coupled to a video-on-demand importerserver 358 that receives and stores television or movie content receivedat the acquisition tier 306 and communicates the stored content to theVoD server 336 at the client-facing tier 302 via the private network310. Additionally, at the acquisition tier 306, the VoD importer server358 can receive content from one or more VoD sources outside the IPTVsystem 300, such as movie studios and programmers of non-live content.The VoD importer server 358 can transmit the VoD content to the AQTswitch 352, and the AQT switch 352, in turn, can communicate thematerial to the CFT switch 330 via the private network 310. The VoDcontent can be stored at one or more servers, such as the VoD server336.

When users issue requests for VoD content via the set-top box devices316, 324, the requests can be transmitted over the access network 366 tothe VoD server 336, via the CFT switch 330. Upon receiving suchrequests, the VoD server 336 can retrieve the requested VoD content andtransmit the content to the set-top box devices 316, 324 across theaccess network 366, via the CFT switch 330. The set-top box devices 316,324 can transmit the VoD content to the television monitors 318, 326. Inan illustrative embodiment, video or audio portions of VoD content canbe streamed to the set-top box devices 316, 324.

FIG. 3 further illustrates that the operations and management tier 308can include an operations and management tier (OMT) switch 360 thatconducts communication between the operations and management tier 308and the public network 312. In the embodiment illustrated by FIG. 3, theOMT switch 360 is coupled to a TV2 server 362. Additionally, the OMTswitch 360 can be coupled to an OSS/BSS server 364 and to a simplenetwork management protocol monitor 386 that monitors network deviceswithin or coupled to the IPTV system 300. In a particular embodiment,the OMT switch 360 can communicate with the AQT switch 352 via thepublic network 312.

The OSS/BSS server 364 may include a cluster of servers, such as one ormore CPE data collection servers that are adapted to request and storeoperations systems data, such as performance data from the set-top boxdevices 316, 324. In an illustrative embodiment, the CPE data collectionservers may be adapted to analyze performance data to identify acondition of a physical component of a network path associated with aset-top box device, to predict a condition of a physical component of anetwork path associated with a set-top box device, or any combinationthereof.

In an illustrative embodiment, the live acquisition server 354 cantransmit content to the AQT switch 352, and the AQT switch 352, in turn,can transmit the content to the OMT switch 360 via the public network312. In this embodiment, the OMT switch 360 can transmit the content tothe TV2 server 362 for display to users accessing the user interface atthe TV2 server 362. For example, a user can access the TV2 server 362using a personal computer 368 coupled to the public network 312.

The web server 130 of FIG. 1 can be operably coupled to the thirdcommunication system 300 for purposes similar to those described above.

It should be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art from theforegoing media communication system embodiments that other suitablemedia communication systems for distributing broadcast media content aswell as peer-to-peer exchange of content can be applied to the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 4 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a communication system 400employing an IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) network architecture.Communication system 400 can be overlaid or operably coupled withcommunication systems 100-300 as another representative embodiment ofsaid communication systems.

The communication system 400 can comprise a Home Subscriber Server (HSS)440, a tElephone NUmber Mapping (ENUM) server 430, and network elementsof an IMS network 450. The IMS network 450 can be coupled to IMScompliant communication devices (CD) 401, 402 or a Public SwitchedTelephone Network (PSTN) CD 403 using a Media Gateway Control Function(MGCF) 420 that connects the call through a common PSTN network 460.

IMS CDs 401, 402 register with the IMS network 450 by contacting a ProxyCall Session Control Function (P-CSCF) which communicates with acorresponding Serving CSCF (S-CSCF) to register the CDs with anAuthentication, Authorization and Accounting (AAA) supported by the HSS440. To accomplish a communication session between CDs, an originatingIMS CD 401 can submit a Session Initiation Protocol (SIP INVITE) messageto an originating P-CSCF 404 which communicates with a correspondingoriginating S-CSCF 406. The originating S-CSCF 406 can submit the SIPINVITE message to an application server (AS) such as reference 410 thatcan provide a variety of services to IMS subscribers. For example, theapplication server 410 can be used to perform originating treatmentfunctions on the calling party number received by the originating S-CSCF406 in the SIP INVITE message.

Originating treatment functions can include determining whether thecalling party number has international calling services, and/or isrequesting special telephony features (e.g., *72 forward calls, *73cancel call forwarding, *67 for caller ID blocking, and so on).Additionally, the originating S-CSCF 406 can submit queries to the ENUMsystem 430 to translate an E.164 telephone number to a SIP UniformResource Identifier (URI) if the targeted communication device is IMScompliant. If the targeted communication device is a PSTN device, theENUM system 430 will respond with an unsuccessful address resolution andthe S-CSCF 406 will forward the call to the MGCF 420 via a BreakoutGateway Control Function (BGCF) 419.

When the ENUM server 430 returns a SIP URI, the SIP URI is used by anInterrogating CSCF (I-CSCF) 407 to submit a query to the HSS 440 toidentify a terminating S-CSCF 414 associated with a terminating IMS CDsuch as reference 402. Once identified, the I-CSCF 407 can submit theSIP INVITE to the terminating S-CSCF 414 which can call on anapplication server 411 similar to reference 410 to perform theoriginating treatment telephony functions described earlier. Theterminating S-CSCF 414 can then identify a terminating P-CSCF 416associated with the terminating CD 402. The P-CSCF 416 then signals theCD 402 to establish communications. The aforementioned process issymmetrical. Accordingly, the terms “originating” and “terminating” inFIG. 4 can be interchanged.

IMS network 450 can also be operably coupled to the web server 130previously discussed for FIG. 1. In this representative embodiment, theweb server 130 can be accessed over a PSTN or VoIP channel ofcommunication system 400 by common techniques such as described above.

FIG. 5 depicts an illustrative embodiment of a portal 530. The portal530 can be used for managing services of communication systems 100-400.The portal 530 can be accessed by a Uniform Resource Locator (URL) witha common Internet browser such as Microsoft's Internet Explorer using anInternet-capable communication device such as references 108, 116, or210 of FIGS. 1-2. The portal 530 can be configured to access a mediaprocessor such as references 106, 204, 206, 316, and 324 of FIGS. 1-3and services managed thereby such as a Digital Video Recorder (DVR), anElectronic Programming Guide (EPG), VoD catalog, a personal catalogstored in the STB (e.g., personal videos, pictures, audio recordings,etc.), and so on.

FIG. 6 depicts an exemplary embodiment of a communication device 600.Communication device 600 can be a representative portion of any of theaforementioned communication devices of FIGS. 1-4. The communicationdevice 604 can comprise a wireline and/or wireless transceiver 602(herein transceiver 602), a user interface (UI) 604, a power supply 614,and a controller 606 for managing operations thereof. The transceiver602 can support short-range or long-range wireless access technologiessuch as a Bluetooth wireless access protocol, a Wireless Fidelity (WiFi)access protocol, a Digital Enhanced Cordless Telecommunications (DECT)wireless access protocol, cellular, software defined radio (SDR) and/orWiMAX technologies, just to mention a few. Cellular technologies caninclude, for example, CDMA-1X, UMTS/HSDPA, GSM/GPRS, TDMA/EDGE, EV/DO,and next generation technologies as they arise.

The transceiver 602 can also support common wireline access technologiessuch as circuit-switched wireline access technologies, packet-switchedwireline access technologies, or combinations thereof. PSTN canrepresent one of the common circuit-switched wireline accesstechnologies. Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP), and IP datacommunications can represent some of the commonly availablepacket-switched wireline access technologies. The transceiver 602 canalso be adapted to support IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) protocol forinterfacing to an IMS network that can combine PSTN and VoIPcommunication technologies.

The UI 604 can include a depressible or touch-sensitive keypad 608 and anavigation mechanism such as a roller ball, joystick, mouse, and/ornavigation disk for manipulating operations of the communication device600. The keypad 608 can be an integral part of a housing assembly of thecommunication device 600 or an independent device operably coupledthereto by a tethered wiring interface (e.g., USB) or a wirelessinterface supporting for example Bluetooth. The keypad 608 can representa numeric dialing keypad commonly used by phones, and/or a Qwerty keypadwith alphanumeric keys.

The UI 604 can further include a display 610 such as monochrome or colorLCD (Liquid Crystal Display), OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diode) orother suitable display technology for conveying images to the end userof the communication device 600. In an embodiment where the display 610is touch-sensitive, a portion or all of the keypad 608 can be presentedby way of the display. The UI 604 can also include an audio system 612that utilizes common audio technology for conveying low volume audio(e.g., audio heard only in the proximity of a human ear) and high volumeaudio (e.g., speakerphone for hands free operation). The audio system612 can further include a microphone for receiving audible signals of anend user.

The power supply 614 can utilize common power management technologiessuch as replaceable and rechargeable batteries, supply regulationtechnologies, and charging system technologies for supplying energy tothe components of the communication device 600 to facilitate long-rangeor short-range portable applications. The controller 606 can utilizecomputing technologies such as a microprocessor and/or digital signalprocessor (DSP) with associated storage memory such a Flash, ROM, RAM,SRAM, DRAM or other storage technologies.

FIG. 7 depicts an illustrative method 700 operating in portions ofcommunication systems 100-400 which can be an iTV or IPTV system forexample. Method 700 begins with step 702 in which a HTML or webpage iscreated using a template defining a format of presentation of the pageusing an iTV or IPTV application system.

In step 704 the system can receive a request for the HTML page orwebpage from a subscriber of the iTV or IPTV system. At 706, the systemcan access application system subscriber data for the subscriber and at708 a presentation of the page is dynamically adapted according to theapplication system subscriber data. The iTV or IPTV application systemcan belong to an iTV or IPTV service provider or can be operativelycoupled to a third party content provider. Note that iTV or IPTV networkelements can provide application system subscriber data to enable thedynamic adaptation of the HTML page or webpage. In one alternative at710, the page can be dynamically adapted by changing in content or bychanging a look and feel of an HTML page or webpage. In anotheralternative at 712, the webpage or HTML page can be dynamically adaptedby modifying graphic user interface elements based on the applicationsystem subscriber data.

The application system subscriber data can include services subscribedto by the subscriber and may only include information to the extent thatit relates with the content supplied by the content provider. Theapplication system subscriber data can include information related toservices subscribed to by the subscriber and related to a contentprovider for the services subscribed and can exclude application systemsubscriber data related to services provided by other content providers.In another aspect, the application system at 714 can share demographicdata or psychographic data for the subscriber to further enabledynamically adapting the presentation of the webpage or HTML page. Inyet another aspect, the iTV or IPTV system can determine availablecommunication resources for the subscriber and further adapts graphicaluser interface (GUI) elements on the HTML page and system functionalitybased on the available communication resources determined at 716. Theavailable communication resource can be a CVoIP phone for example wherea webpage or an HTML page has a customized GUI element for making aCVoIP call connection to a third party service provider when selectingthe customized GUI element. In one embodiment as shown in 718, theavailable communication resources can include a messaging system where awebpage or HTML page includes a customized GUI element for sending amessage automatically containing subscriber information to a third partyservice provider when selecting the customized GUI element.

Upon reviewing the aforementioned embodiments, it would be evident to anartisan with ordinary skill in the art that said embodiments can bemodified, reduced, or enhanced without departing from the scope andspirit of the claims described below. For example, method 700 can beadapted so that such method can operate with available communicationresources among VoIP phone service, cell phone, email, internet, IMS, orPSTN and the GUI elements can be adapted accordingly with the availablefunctions for such respective services. Furthermore, the pages orwebpages presented can be any non-proprietary or proprietary page suchas HTML, media room markup language (MRML) or any other markup languageas an example and not limited to those shown here.

In yet another embodiment, the adaptation process can be used for asecond presentation device and can utilize transcoding techniques tocreate something other than an HTML webpage. That is, the adaptationprocess applied to the customized webpage GUI can produce a proprietaryor non-proprietary GUI that can be interpreted by software applications(e.g., Java scripts) operating in a common computer or personal digitalassistant. Accordingly, the proprietary or non-proprietary GUI can betransferred or conveyed to a presentation device according to a protocolthat may not necessarily comply with the HTML protocol for webpages.

Other suitable modifications can be applied to the present disclosurewithout departing from the scope of the claims below. Accordingly, thereader is directed to the claims section for a fuller understanding ofthe breadth and scope of the present disclosure.

FIG. 11 depicts an exemplary diagrammatic representation of a machine inthe form of a computer system 1100 within which a set of instructions,when executed, may cause the machine to perform any one or more of themethodologies discussed above. In some embodiments, the machine operatesas a standalone device. In some embodiments, the machine may beconnected (e.g., using a network) to other machines. In a networkeddeployment, the machine may operate in the capacity of a server or aclient user machine in server-client user network environment, or as apeer machine in a peer-to-peer (or distributed) network environment.

The machine may comprise a server computer, a client user computer, apersonal computer (PC), a tablet PC, a laptop computer, a desktopcomputer, a control system, a network router, switch or bridge, or anymachine capable of executing a set of instructions (sequential orotherwise) that specify actions to be taken by that machine. It will beunderstood that a device of the present disclosure includes broadly anyelectronic device that provides voice, video or data communication.Further, while a single machine is illustrated, the term “machine” shallalso be taken to include any collection of machines that individually orjointly execute a set (or multiple sets) of instructions to perform anyone or more of the methodologies discussed herein.

The computer system 1100 may include a processor 1102 (e.g., a centralprocessing unit (CPU), a graphics processing unit (GPU, or both), a mainmemory 1104 and a static memory 1106, which communicate with each othervia a bus 1108. The computer system 1100 may further include a videodisplay unit 1110 (e.g., a liquid crystal display (LCD), a flat panel, asolid state display, or a cathode ray tube (CRT)). The computer system1100 may include an input device 1112 (e.g., a keyboard), a cursorcontrol device 1114 (e.g., a mouse), a disk drive unit 1116, a signalgeneration device 1118 (e.g., a speaker or remote control) and a networkinterface device 1120.

The disk drive unit 1116 may include a machine-readable medium 1122 onwhich is stored one or more sets of instructions (e.g., software 1124)embodying any one or more of the methodologies or functions describedherein, including those methods illustrated above. The instructions 1124may also reside, completely or at least partially, within the mainmemory 1104, the static memory 1106, and/or within the processor 1102during execution thereof by the computer system 1100. The main memory1104 and the processor 1102 also may constitute machine-readable media.

Dedicated hardware implementations including, but not limited to,application specific integrated circuits, programmable logic arrays andother hardware devices can likewise be constructed to implement themethods described herein. Applications that may include the apparatusand systems of various embodiments broadly include a variety ofelectronic and computer systems. Some embodiments implement functions intwo or more specific interconnected hardware modules or devices withrelated control and data signals communicated between and through themodules, or as portions of an application-specific integrated circuit.Thus, the example system is applicable to software, firmware, andhardware implementations.

In accordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure, themethods described herein are intended for operation as software programsrunning on a computer processor. Furthermore, software implementationscan include, but not limited to, distributed processing orcomponent/object distributed processing, parallel processing, or virtualmachine processing can also be constructed to implement the methodsdescribed herein.

The present disclosure contemplates a machine readable medium containinginstructions 1124, or that which receives and executes instructions 1124from a propagated signal so that a device connected to a networkenvironment 1126 can send or receive voice, video or data, and tocommunicate over the network 1126 using the instructions 1124. Theinstructions 1124 may further be transmitted or received over a network1126 via the network interface device 1120.

While the machine-readable medium 1122 is shown in an example embodimentto be a single medium, the term “machine-readable medium” should betaken to include a single medium or multiple media (e.g., a centralizedor distributed database, and/or associated caches and servers) thatstore the one or more sets of instructions. The term “machine-readablemedium” shall also be taken to include any medium that is capable ofstoring, encoding or carrying a set of instructions for execution by themachine and that cause the machine to perform any one or more of themethodologies of the present disclosure.

The term “machine-readable medium” shall accordingly be taken toinclude, but not be limited to: solid-state memories such as a memorycard or other package that houses one or more read-only (non-volatile)memories, random access memories, or other re-writable (volatile)memories; magneto-optical or optical medium such as a disk or tape;and/or a digital file attachment to e-mail or other self-containedinformation archive or set of archives is considered a distributionmedium equivalent to a tangible storage medium. Accordingly, thedisclosure is considered to include any one or more of amachine-readable medium or a distribution medium, as listed herein andincluding art-recognized equivalents and successor media, in which thesoftware implementations herein are stored.

Although the present specification describes components and functionsimplemented in the embodiments with reference to particular standardsand protocols, the disclosure is not limited to such standards andprotocols. Each of the standards for Internet and other packet switchednetwork transmission (e.g., TCP/IP, UDP/IP, HTML, HTTP) representexamples of the state of the art. Such standards are periodicallysuperseded by faster or more efficient equivalents having essentiallythe same functions. Accordingly, replacement standards and protocolshaving the same functions are considered equivalents.

The illustrations of embodiments described herein are intended toprovide a general understanding of the structure of various embodiments,and they are not intended to serve as a complete description of all theelements and features of apparatus and systems that might make use ofthe structures described herein. Many other embodiments will be apparentto those of skill in the art upon reviewing the above description. Otherembodiments may be utilized and derived therefrom, such that structuraland logical substitutions and changes may be made without departing fromthe scope of this disclosure. Figures are also merely representationaland may not be drawn to scale. Certain proportions thereof may beexaggerated, while others may be minimized. Accordingly, thespecification and drawings are to be regarded in an illustrative ratherthan a restrictive sense.

Such embodiments of the inventive subject matter may be referred toherein, individually and/or collectively, by the term “invention” merelyfor convenience and without intending to voluntarily limit the scope ofthis application to any single invention or inventive concept if morethan one is in fact disclosed. Thus, although specific embodiments havebeen illustrated and described herein, it should be appreciated that anyarrangement calculated to achieve the same purpose may be substitutedfor the specific embodiments shown. This disclosure is intended to coverany and all adaptations or variations of various embodiments.Combinations of the above embodiments, and other embodiments notspecifically described herein, will be apparent to those of skill in theart upon reviewing the above description.

The Abstract of the Disclosure is provided to comply with 37 C.F.R.§1.72(b), requiring an abstract that will allow the reader to quicklyascertain the nature of the technical disclosure. It is submitted withthe understanding that it will not be used to interpret or limit thescope or meaning of the claims. In addition, in the foregoing DetailedDescription, it can be seen that various features are grouped togetherin a single embodiment for the purpose of streamlining the disclosure.This method of disclosure is not to be interpreted as reflecting anintention that the claimed embodiments require more features than areexpressly recited in each claim. Rather, as the following claimsreflect, inventive subject matter lies in less than all features of asingle disclosed embodiment. Thus the following claims are herebyincorporated into the Detailed Description, with each claim standing onits own as a separately claimed subject matter.

What is claimed is:
 1. A web server, comprising: a processing systemincluding a processor; and a memory that stores executable instructionsthat, when executed by the processing system, facilitate performance ofoperations, comprising: receiving a request for a webpage from a deviceused by a subscriber of a media service; providing, to the device, thewebpage to the device including application system subscriber data toidentify available subscribed-to services of the device, wherein theavailable subscribed-to services are supplied by different contentsources including a third party service provider, wherein the deviceadapts a presentation of the webpage to display available subscribed-toservices identified by the application system subscriber data withoutpresenting subscribed-to services provided by other service providersthat are not identified by the application system subscriber data;receiving a selection of the third party service provider from thedevice; and providing the application system subscriber data related tothe selection of the third party service provider to equipment of thethird party service provider responsive to receiving the selection ofthe third party service provider.
 2. The web server of claim 1, whereinthe media service is managed by an interactive television serviceprovider, and wherein the third party service provider is a voicecommunication service provider that manages a voice communicationservice, wherein the communication service provider is different fromthe interactive television service provider.
 3. The web server of claim1, wherein the device changes a functionality of the webpage accordingto the available subscribed-to services for use at the device.
 4. Theweb server of claim 1, wherein the device changes a portion of agraphical user interface of the webpage according to the availablesubscribed-to services for use at the device.
 5. The web server of claim1, wherein the device dynamically adapts the presentation of the webpageaccording the application system subscriber data.
 6. The web server ofclaim 1, wherein the webpage is created according to a template thatdefines a format of the presentation of the webpage.
 7. The web serverof claim 1, wherein the available subscribed-to services presented inthe webpage include information that is only related to content providedby a content provider of each of the available subscribed-to services.8. The web server of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprisedetermining communication resources of the device as the applicationsystem subscriber data, wherein the third party service providercomprises a voice communication service that can be initiated from thedevice, and wherein the presentation of the webpage includes the voicecommunication service of the third party service provider.
 9. The webserver of claim 8, wherein the receiving the selection of the thirdparty service provider is performed through a selection via a graphicaluser interface of the webpage.
 10. A communication device, comprising: aprocessing system including a processor; and a memory that storesexecutable instructions that, when executed by the processing system,facilitate performance of operations, comprising: receiving applicationsystem subscriber data identifying available subscribed-to services foruse at the processing system, wherein the available subscribed-toservices are supplied by different content sources; determiningcommunication resources of the processing system, wherein thecommunication resources of the processing system comprise a third partyvoice communication service that can be initiated from the processingsystem; and adapting a presentation of a graphical user interfacepresented by the processing system to display the availablesubscribed-to services determined from the application system subscriberdata and to exclude subscribed-to services provided by a contentprovider that is not identified in the application system subscriberdata; receiving a selection of the third party voice communicationservice through the graphical user interface; and providing theapplication system subscriber data to equipment of the third party voicecommunication service responsive to receiving the selection of the thirdparty voice communication service.
 11. The system of claim 10, whereinthe adapting the presentation of the graphical user interface comprisesdynamically presenting the available subscribed-to services.
 12. Thesystem of claim 10, wherein the graphical user interface is createdusing a template for defining a format of the presentation of thegraphical user interface.
 13. The system of claim 10, wherein theavailable subscribed-to services presented in the graphical userinterface include information related only to content provided by acontent provider of each of the available subscribed-to services. 14.The system of claim 10, wherein the available subscribed-to servicesincludes a media service managed by an interactive television serviceprovider, and wherein the third party voice communication serviceincludes a voice communication service managed by a communicationservice provider different from the interactive television serviceprovider.
 15. The system of claim 14, wherein the adapting furthercomprises changing a portion of the graphical user interface toaccommodate the media service and the third party voice communicationservice.
 16. A method, comprising: obtaining, by a processing systemincluding a processor, application system subscriber data thatidentifies available subscribed-to services for use at the processingsystem, wherein the available subscribed-to services are supplied bydifferent content sources; adapting, by the processing system, apresentation of a graphical user interface to display the availablesubscribed-to services identified by the application system subscriberdata and to exclude subscribed-to services that are not identified inthe application system subscriber data, wherein communication resourcesof the processing system include a voice communication service that canbe initiated from the processing system; and providing the applicationsystem subscriber data to equipment of a content source responsive toreceiving a selection of the voice communication service through thegraphical user interface.
 17. The method of claim 16, wherein theavailable subscribed-to services includes a media service managed by aninteractive television service provider, and wherein the voicecommunication service is managed by a communication service providerdifferent from the interactive television service provider.
 18. Themethod of claim 16, wherein the adapting further comprises changing of afunctionality of the graphical user interface according to the availablesubscribed-to services for use at the processing system.
 19. The methodof claim 16, wherein the processing system is part of a mobile phone,and wherein the graphical user interface is provided in a webpage. 20.The method of claim 19, wherein the webpage is dynamically adapted topresent the voice communication service and a media service managed by atelevision service provider.